Home
by kaatherine
Summary: For Tony, life since Ziva left NCIS has been unsettled. Even though it has been over two years since they parted, nothing has felt quite the same. But what will their future hold? A story where finding home isn't in a place, but in a person.
1. Prologue

**INTRODUCTION**

 **Hi everyone! My name's Katherine and this is the first time I've even attempted writing fanfic. I have read A LOT though!  
I guess I'm writing this because I love Tiva A LOT, and I'm still sad that we didn't get to see a real relationship between Tony and Ziva (though what we did get over 8 years was still pretty incredible.) And now that Michael Weatherly's leaving NCIS, and we don't know if Cote de Pablo will have any part in his goodbye (** **L** **) I just really felt like writing something.  
To be honest, I really haven't watched much of NCIS since Cote left (please don't stop reading because of this!) I really tried to, but there was just too much missing, it just wasn't the NCIS I loved anymore. But I have been keeping tabs, and the show's still doing so well!  
So because of this, my story probably won't be the most accurate representation of what is currently happening/there's things I've missed/not aware of, but if this works out I'll do my best! I'm really just writing from my ideal Tiva world, of how Tony and Ziva come back together again, starting in about present time. I literally just decided to write this tonight, so right now I'm not really sure what direction I'm heading in!  
So please, I hope you read the start of this story and enjoy it, and please leave some comments! As I said I have no experience in writing fanfic at all (getting used to even the rating system), so if a few of you enjoy it I'd love to keep developing this, and turn it into something longer! And if that does happen, please leave suggestions/fill me in on anything I've missed/what you would love to see happen between these two and the rest of the team, because I'd love this to be a story that everyone can help create.  
Sorry for the super long intro, I hope you can see the start of something here, and let me know what you think! ****J** **  
(Also I don't know how this works but I don't own NCIS, or the characters or anything to do with the show)**

 **PROLOGUE**

Over two years. It had been more than two years since Ziva David had left NCIS. More than two years since Tony had done that near impossible but somehow 180 degree turn on the tarmac in Israel. The last time they embraced, the kisses that they shared, the frustration that they both felt for having to say goodbye…more than two years had passed. And for Tony DiNozzo life in those years just hadn't felt the same.

He had returned to work at NCIS, welcomed a new addition to the team in replacement of Ziva, supported his work family through the hardest of times and tried at a relationship, all in this time. And while life had continued, and he had most definitely enjoyed a lot of it, it had just felt…unsettled. Like everything was there in theory and yet there was this constant part missing. And deep down Tony knew that this was Ziva David, but no matter how hard he tried to shake this feeling it remained.

Tony had kept in contact with Ziva as much as possible of course, but it was never the same as looking across the bullpen, going to cases together, or even sharing an elevator ride. He had followed her journey as she travelled through parts of Europe and Asia, volunteering in Africa, living what seemed like the dream. For most of the first year after she left they skyped weekly, and it was this time of the week that Tony looked forward to the most, knowing that he would see Ziva's smile that she saved for him. But for Tony, when he met Zoe things changed. He never really spoke about it with Ziva, but almost naturally the skyping stopped – the messaging did not, but it just wasn't as personal anymore. He knew that Ziva wasn't angry at him, they had parted ways not knowing at what part in the future they would cross paths again. But that wouldn't stop and sadness felt, or regret that they hadn't fully grabbed their chance together.

Deep down Tony knew that that was why his relationship with Zoe didn't work. He did fall in love with her, and at first he thought that she would be enough for a lifetime. But, as life shows, things that seem ideal just sometimes don't work out that way. Too often he would feel like he was cheating on his own feelings, or no matter how much love Zoe gave him he just couldn't return it. Which he knew was stupid, because when he left Ziva in Israel they both knew that this was it, that life as they knew it for the past 8 years was changing and so was what they shared. And yet Tony still felt it…unsettled. Unsettled at work, unsettled in his relationship, constantly unsettled with himself. Scared of love, scared of fully committing to someone. At first he blamed his age, just assuming he was experiencing a midlife crisis. Which may have played a part of it, but ultimately it was because home had been missing from Tony DiNozzo's life for over two years.

It was as he was heading to work one morning, in the exact same routine he had done for the time that Ziva had left that he realised he couldn't keep living his life this way. He knew that something had to change. He had become lost in himself. What Tony DiNozzo needed, was a sign. A sign that he should not lose hope. What he didn't realise that morning, however, that much needed sign was coming.


	2. Another Case

**Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed this so far, it's so encouraging and means a lot! Thought I'd post the next chapter now, just so you all get more of a taste of it. Again, this chapter is much (MUCH) shorter than I'll be aiming for as I really get in to my writing - it's still introducing where I'm at/the characters are in it. But I'm really getting excited for this! Hope you enjoy this chapter, and please keep letting me know what you think!**

 **ANOTHER CASE**

"Grab your gear, we've got a case." Tony had been greeted by this same sentence hundreds of times throughout his years at NCIS. Gibbs marched into the bullpen, coffee in hand, case brief in the other.  
"22 year old marine found in a lake about 30 minutes away, let's go. I'll fill you in on the drive." McGee and Bishop were quick to follow their boss, Tony, met with this same lagging feeling was a few steps behind, but still quick enough to avoid a headslap. Working at NCIS, and for so many years, investigating death was part of the daily routine, but his heart always sank when it was a young person. 22 years old, this was someone with their whole life ahead of them. Barely an adult and yet they're gone all too quickly. If there was one thing that Tony had learnt over his years in his job, was that life was too precious to waste. And yet, here he was, struggling to fully be present.

When the team got to the crime scene the body was already being examined by Ducky and Jimmy.  
"What we have here appears to be a victim of gunshot wounds, which would have caused mass internal bleeding," stated Ducky. "He also has bruising and broken bones acquired prior to death, this poor man suffered a great deal."  
"Just got the results of the fingerprint scanning, meet Harry Anderson, joined the marines 3 years ago after high school," said McGee, re-joining the group.  
"Any history of violence or anything?" asked Bishop.  
"Nothing on record, not even a speeding fine. This guy appears to be as clean as they come. Was a pretty good tennis player at high school too, and a solid student." informed McGee.  
"So he was killed by some bastard for no reason. Fantastic. Just great," Tony said, anger rising through him. "My favorite kind of case."  
"Hey DiNozzo, keep it cool. We don't know the story yet. Get to work and start investigating." Gibbs ordered, appearing annoyed by his senior agent. He felt exactly the same as DiNozzo, however he knew that this wasn't the time to express it. DiNozzo had him worried, he knew there was a change in him. Gibbs missed Ziva, he missed her on the team. She was like a daughter to him, and though there contact was limited to only a few calls since she left, he knew she was happy. However, as much as he tried not to see it, DiNozzo was still in a personal hurting place, a place that Gibbs knew all too well. And he knew it was only a matter of time until enough was enough.


End file.
